


Kickass Girlfriend

by writing_and_procrastinating



Category: The Illuminae Files - Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
Genre: F/M, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-16
Updated: 2018-12-05
Packaged: 2019-05-24 02:46:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14946137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writing_and_procrastinating/pseuds/writing_and_procrastinating
Summary: Flashback from Part I





	1. Part I

About two weeks after you came aboard the Mao, things started to take a bad turn. Firstly, after Ezra got the assignment to train some people on how to fly the fighters the Mao had, Ezra decided he wanted Nik as his gunner. Obviously, the people who used to live on Heimdall knew of Nik’s past; and a guy named McCubbin and several others started beating him up. What Nik didn’t tell you was that he was the first one to throw a punch, after McCubbin said something about how you’re ‘a slut for being pregnant at that age’ and some other nasty stuff. Nik, being the gentleman he is, couldn’t let this go without doing something. So rationally, he punched McCubbin, ultimately breaking his nose.  
The next day, you woke up to the news that AIDAN released all the excess carbon monoxide into Level 3 and 4, killing over 2,000 people in the process. To say you were furious would’ve been an understatement. You, alongside Kady and some other people, hoped that AIDAN got over his murderous, rebel phase but apparently he had only just started. So Kady had to turn AIDAN off again but still, people were rioting, demanding for Captain Syra Boll to step back. Leader of this whole Rebellion was ex-Security Chief of Heimdall, Ben Garver. Two days after the mass genocide, Ben Garver somehow managed to assemble thirty people to take over the Mao. At that time, you were seated in your bed in the infirmary, next to Ella, trying to assemble the ‘Illmuniae Files’, basically putting together messages, emails and more which could be used as evidence for BeiTechs attacks on Kerenza and Heimdall. You only heard about the uprising from Kady, when she sent Ella and you messages about how Garver started a mutiny on the bridge and locked everyone in there. However, the conflict was quickly resolved when Ella reactivated AIDAN after Nik, Hanna and Ezra managed to take over the Server Room.

Two Days later you arrived at Kerenza, the distress call had reached you and you all had a plan figured out. The plan didn’t involve BeiTech sending people from the Churchill to the Kenyatta though. Neither did it involve the fighter Ezra and Nik were flying in to be shot. You were on the bridge with Kady, wanting to help as much as you could and give Ella the space she needed with all her monitors. Everything around you was chaos when Kady suddenly stopped everything she was doing, staring at one of the screens before her, not registering anything that happened around her.  
“Kady!” You heard Ella scream at her through the intercoms, as you walked up to her, wanting to see what caused her to lose her focus.  
“…They’re gone…,” she mumbled, still staring at the screen.  
“Who’s gone, Kady?” you asked, part of you fearing the answer, hoping this wasn’t real, that Kady didn’t mean who you thought she meant.  
“Ezra and Nik…They’re-“  
You didn’t know what she said afterwards, indistinctively you could hear Ella through the intercoms, as everything around you went blurry. The people rushing around, the constant beeping, the flashing of screens, the sparks bursting from computers, people yelling for instructions, everything faded away. This couldn’t be happening. No, this wasn’t real, he’s still alive. You couldn’t believe it, you didn’t want to believe. Black dots clouded your vision, you saw a familiar face appear in front of you but at that time your knees were already giving out underneath you and you were slumping to the ground.

By the time you woke up again, Kady was standing above you, together with Hanna. Both girls looked more than worried, tears brimming their eyes but happy to see you awake. You didn’t remember what happened before you passed out but the fact that you saw Hanna made you come to the conclusion that all went well and the Mao was docked to BeiTech’s portable jumpstation Magellan.  
“What happened? Where’s Nik?” you asked, your voice raspy. Hanna and Kady looked at each other, afraid to remind you what happened to both Nik and Ezra.  
“(Y/N)…they-they didn’t make it. BeiTech sent their own fighters and-and they…they’re gone.” You could here Kady trying, very hard, not to break down at that very moment but it made it even harder for you. All these months you were prepared to never see Nik again, to raise your child alone and if you’d ever see Nik, that he would hate you. But just a few weeks ago that changed. You knew you didn’t have to go through this alone, Nik would be by your side, supporting you where and whenever he could. And now? Now your life crumbled down in front of you. The one person you truly, without a doubt, care about was gone. Dead. Thinking about all this made your breathing speed up, short and flat gasps leaving your body. Kady tried to take your hand when out of nowhere you felt a sharp pain shooting through your lower abdomen, causing you to squeeze your eyes shut and let out a gasp.  
“Oh my god, (Y/N)-Hanna go get a nurse or a doctor. I think the baby is coming,” Kady instructed Hanna while you nodded at her statement when you felt your water breaking, confirming that, yes the baby was coming. In this very moment.  
“I can’t do this, Kady,” you panted, “not without Nik.”  
“Yes, you can, (Y/N). I’ll help you, we will all help you, okay?”  
Within the next few minutes, a nurse and a doctor came rushing in, checking how much dilated you were and were preparing you to give birth and push out your baby.

While you felt like someone was repeatedly stabbing you with a hot knife, down on Kerenza IV Nik and Ezra had survived, thanks to the parachute Nik kept strapped to his back even after being ridiculed for wearing one in space all the time. Well, looks who’s laughing now.  
“Alright, Babyface, we might have survived but I have a pregnant girlfriend, who’s probably gonna kill me, to get to. So let’s get off this freezing planet.”  
“How many times do I have to tell you, don’t call me that,” Ezra sighed, annoyed by the stupid nickname his friend had given him.  
Soon enough they found a shuttle to take them and some of the survivors on Kerenza to the Magellan, where you were refusing to cooperate, not wanting to start this new part of your life without Nik.

“(Y/N), you need to push! You’re risking your life and the life of your baby,” the doctor tried to talk to you but at this point you were blatantly sobbing, refusing to push even though the pain got worse with every second. Kady stood by your side, holding your hand, while Hanna, Ella, Isaac Grant and Winifred McCall waited outside your room. On the Magellan, you had better equipment and more space, which gave you the benefit of having your own room and some privacy.  
“I can’t. No, I don’t want to. Not without Nik,” your cried out, still not over the ‘death’ of your boyfriend. With every passing second the pain in your lower abdomen got worse but still, you didn’t bother to push.

Outside your room, Hanna suddenly got a message from one of the shuttles, telling her that both Ezra and Nik had made it out alive and were now arriving in Bay 2. While you were still in immense pain, doctor and nurse yelling at you to push, Hanna ran to Bay 2, where she pulled both Ezra and Nik into a bone-crushing hug.  
“Quick, (Y/N) is in labour and she’s refusing to do it without you, Nik,” Hanna urged, already turning to run back to the infirmary. Nik and Ezra were both shocked, staring at the blond girl in front of them.  
“L-labor?” Nik asked, dumbfounded since he didn’t expect the baby to arrive just yet.  
However, within only a few seconds, he quickly sprinted after Hanna, Ezra right behind him. They pushed through people, not bothering to excuse themselves. Even from afar they could hear your screams and sobs, which only prompted Nik to run faster, pushing past Hanna, just to see his cousin sitting in front of the room his girlfriend was supposed to give birth in. As much as he wanted to stop, Nik sprinted past his friends and family and slammed open the door, so that it hit the wall.

You were screaming in pain by now, feeling like you were being ripped apart, tears streaming down your face. And still, all you could think about was Niklas Malikov.   
“Please, (Y/N/N). Just push. For you and fo-“ She was interrupted by a loud bang coming from the door. You were convicted you were starting to hallucinate, the pain making you see things. Or people. People who were supposed to be dead, specifically.  
“Nik…” you breathed, afraid that he wasn’t real and it was just your mind playing tricks on you. But apparently Kady saw him too because she let go of your hand and rushed out of the room, in hopes to see her tall boyfriend standing there. Nik quickly walked over to you, taking your hand in his, giving it a squeeze and kissing you on your forehead.  
“I’m here, (Y/N), I’m here. But you need to be strong now and push, okay?” he told you, tears glistening in his eyes, while you were crying out of pure relief and happiness to know that he didn’t die.  
“Alright, (Y/N). PUSH!”

After just about an hour, your little girl was officially born. After she was cleaned up, clothes were put on her and she was wrapped in a blanket, the nurse handed the infant to you. Tears welled up in your eyes as you looked at the tiny human in your arms and as you looked up at Nik you saw him wiping his eyes. He looked at you, leaning down to kiss your lips. This was the first time you could really register what just happened, Nik was alive after all and he was sitting beside you, dirty, bloody and sweaty but alive. You both looked down at the little bundle in your arms, just as she opened her (Y/E/C) eyes, blinking at the two of you.  
Several minutes later, there was a knock on your door and Kady’s head appeared in the doorway.  
“Hey,” she said quietly, “can we come in?”  
“Yea, sure,” Nik answered for you, while you were softly and slowly stroking your daughter’s cheek. The door opened further and in came, Kady, Ella, Hanna, Ezra, Isaac and Winifred, all with big smiles on their faces when they saw Nik and you sitting together on the hospital bed, your daughter pressed to your chest. Nik immediately stood up from the bed and walked over to Ella, who had tears in her eyes, and hugged her as tight as he could, being happy to see his little cousin alive and well.  
“Do you have a name for her?” Ezra was the first one to break the silence. You smiled at Nik, having discussed the name before your friends entered the room.  
“Yep, meet Syra Helena Malikov,” you smiled at the group in front of you. Both, you and Nik choose this name to honour your former Captain, Syra Boll, and Kady’s mum and Isaac’s wife, Helena Grant, who sadly died on the Copernicus after BeiTechs initial attack on Kerenza.  
You could see Kady and Isaac trying to hold back their tears when they realised you’d named your daughter after their mum and wife.  
“Well, let’s see the little girl. I can just hope she looks nothing like Nik, wouldn’t want to be tortured with that ugliness,” Ella teased as she rolled over in her wheelchair to your bed. You carefully handed her your baby, watching together with Nik who now sat beside you again as she smiled at the little girl in her arms, tears welling up in her eyes. In those few moments, the pain, the loss and the sacrifices from the last months were forgotten. Everyone was happy to see little Syra Helena Malikov well and happy, smiling happily at her parents and her godfamily. After all these months, everything stood still for a few moments while the Illuminae Group looked down at their newest member.


	2. Part II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flashback from Part I

“Bye, Natasha,” you waved goodbye to your friend after she dropped you off in front of the apartment complex you lived in together with your parents. As soon as your friend’s car speed off, you fished out your keys, unlocking the front door before walking up the stairs to your apartment while checking your phone, chuckling at the message from one of your friends, asking if you survived the car ride with Natasha. You quickly typed a response with one hand, the other inserting your key into the lock, twisting it and pushing open the door. The sight in front of you caused you to drop your phone in shock, your bag sliding off your shoulder as you blankly stared at the dead bodies of your parents, blood pooling around them, their lifeless eyes wide in surprise. You rushed towards your parents, falling to your knees as you searched their bodies for any hint that they were still alive, shaking them, begging them to wake up.   
By the time you lost all hope your hands were covered in their blood, the overwhelming smell of iron filling your nose. You grabbed the phone as if you were in a trace calling the number of the emergency contact your parents told you about, Zakary Malikov, head of the New Petersburg branch of the House of Knives, leaving red marks on the buttons as you pressed them. Even though you weren’t a member of the crime family, due to your parents forbidding you to join them because of all the dangers, they were the only people who could help you now.  
What felt like only several seconds later the tall man stood in your living room with some other, to you unknown, people.

“We will take care of this. Pack your things, I’ll pick you up in the morning to bring you to the jumpstation, we need to get you off this planet as soon as possible. You’re in great danger, (Y/N),” he said, his face stone cold but his eyes were showing sympathy to you. You nodded your head, heading to the bathroom to try and get rid of the blood staining your hands. After some time, the men left your apartment, taking your parent’s bodies with them, leaving you alone with your thoughts. Overbearing anger took over you, anger at the people who did this to you, to your parents. The House of Ashes, also known as the Dom Popela, was responsible for this, they even had the audacity to leave their symbol on a wall in your bedroom above your bed, painted in your parent’s blood. Determination controlled your body, clouding your mind, as you went into autopilot. You stood up from sitting on your bed, walked into your parent’s bedroom and opened their wardrobe, knowing about the false back of it. After taking the fake wall out, you were greeted with the sight of their combat uniforms, rarely used, and an array of weapons, knives and guns covering the wall. You took out your mothers clothes, taking your own clothes off and pulling on the shirt and trousers, fitting you almost perfectly, your feet sliding into your black boots, hands covered in fingerless gloves as you grabbed some of the weapons, strapping two guns to your upper thighs and attaching throwing knives to your belt. As soon as you were set up, you walked back into your room, pulling out an inconspicuous box from underneath your bed, lifting off the lid and revealing the small bombs you’ve been working on in secret. They might have been small, but one of them could blast away an entire house if placed correctly. After stuffing two of the explosives into the pockets of your pants you opened your window, knowing Zakary had placed some of his people in front of the complex to make sure no one would come after you that night, and stepped out onto the fire escape.

With a soft thud, you landed on the pavement of the alley behind the building, immediately making your way to the quarter of the House of Ashes, knowing exactly where it was after searching through your parent’s documents. The members of the House of Knives had no idea that it was their biggest rival that was responsible for the death of two of their most loyal members, orphaning their daughter. In this very moment, you were happy your parents had trained you in material arts, taught you how to shoot a gun and aim properly as well as throw a knife, even though they hoped you’d never have to use these skills.

Within about half an hour you had made it to the remote lair of the Dom Popela, tightening your ponytail and securing your weapons before sneaking your way into the building, shooting people before they could make a noise, the silencer making it possible for you to kill them without alerting anyone. Loud music and yelling could be heard all through the house, people watching TV in some rooms, others gambling and some even doing drugs. After you cleared the hallway of the ground floor, you decided to work your way from room to room, silently opening the door to the first one, being greeted by a couple snogging in the corner of the room which ended with two bullets in their heads, falling to the floor, their blood spreading on the beige carpet. The next room was filled with 5 people sitting around a table, playing poker, who all jumped up upon seeing the intruder in the doorway. You shot three of them before they could even draw their weapons, throwing a knife at another one and grabbing one of the chairs, smashing it over the head of one of the last person standing in the room, causing him to fall on the ground, unconscious, before shooting him as well. After making sure all of them were dead and retrieving your knives, you made your way up the stairs, repeating what you did downstairs, leaving the room with the large, white double doors until the end, knowing it would most likely be the main room where all the important members of the House of Ashes were seated. You checked every room again, making sure no one was left alive, leaving a possible danger to you, and walked up to the big doors, slamming them open which caused them to hit the walls with a loud bang as you strutted into the room, confidence in every step as well as anger and determination. You could see yourself in the massive mirror at the end of the room, looking like a complete mess with blood splattered all over you, a deep frown on your face, but at that moment you couldn’t care less.

Andrei Ivanov, the head of the Dom Popela, sat up straight, watching you with a disgusted look on his face as he folded his hands in front of him.

“Little girl, what do you want from us? Do you not realise you’re in rival territory? Walk out of this now and we will-“ You interrupted him by shooting a bullet right between his eyes, immediately killing him. The head of the man fell back from the impact, blood running down his face as the remaining six members of the House of Ashes sprang up, pulling out their weapons to defend themselves.

“Don’t ever call me a little girl. My name is (Y/N). Your people killed my parents, (Y/M/N) and (Y/D/N), both honourable members of the Dom Najov, which was the biggest mistake you could’ve made. Now you’ll pay for that.”  
You walked back slightly, hands inching to your guns before you quickly drew them and pulled the triggers, the bullets hitting your targets in the centre of their foreheads. Bullets came flying your way as you jumped onto the table while pulling out your knives, throwing them at Yaroslav and Vitaly Petrov, kicking the gun out of the hand of another member before kicking him into his face, causing him to fall onto the floor, clutching his nose. You turned to the last standing person, Oleg Sokolov, who had his gun aimed at you. As he pulled the trigger you dived underneath the table, pulling another knife from your belt which you used to cut into the insides of his upper thighs, damaging the arteries causing blood to rush out of the wounds, making the man drop his gun in a hopeless attempt to stop the bleeding. This gave you the opportunity to grab his dropped gun, aiming it at him and killing him with one shot. After you got up from your crouched position underneath the table, you saw Roman Ivanov come back to his senses, still clutching his nose as he stood up which was clearly broken from your kick. You landed right in front of the buff man after you leapt over the conference table, him raising his fist, signalling he was ready for a hand-to-hand combat.

“Okay, then,” you mumbled before tossing away the knives you had previously help in your hands.  
Roman made the first move, his fist missing your head when you dodge the punch, striking him in his ribs instead. You both soon engaged into a deadly dance, his hits strong and calculated, making you stumble backwards, losing your footage, every time he hit you while you were quick and swift, managing to avoid most of his punches and kicks. You ended the fight with one last roundhouse kick, followed by a quick cut kick to the head which caused the older man to fall to the floor, blood dripping from his mouth and nose. Making sure he was gone for good you shot him as well before letting yourself fall into one of the abandoned chairs, adrenaline leaving your body while you were catching your breath. Flashbacks of your parents began to cloud your mind, the world around you getting blurry as tears began to fill your eyes as you thought back to their lifeless bodies laying on the floor of your living room. 

Get it together, you thought to yourself and took a deep breath which caused you a sharp pain in your side. When you lifted up your shirt you were greeted with the sight of a bullet wound, blood oozing out of it.

“Fuck,” you cursed out as you grabbed one of your knives to cut off a piece of your shirt, wiping your hands on your pants before biting down on the handle of the knife to dig the bullet out of your body. After tossing the bloody bullet away you stuffed the cut-off part from your shirt into the wound, temporarily stopping the bleeding until you got home to properly clear it up. Tears ran down your cheeks, physical and emotional pain mixing together, slightly washing away the blood that coated your face. You stayed in the chair for several moments, trying to calm yourself down and catching your breath before you stood up and, with shaking legs, made your way over to one of the walls, pulling one of the explosives out of your pocket and fixating it on the wall. Checking the detonator to see if everything was ready, you nodded your head to yourself as you slowly and steadily walked down the stairs, one hand pressing against your side, the other on the wall to keep yourself upright. After reaching the bottom of the stairs you made your way towards the back door, leaving the lair of the House of Ashes behind as you slowly walked back to your place.

You let out a muffled groan when you entered your room through the window, the climb up the fire escape being more straining than you thought it would be. Clothes scattered on the floor, you stepped into the shower, the hot water washing away the blood, relaxing your muscles. You carefully washed yourself, avoiding the wound on your side which you took care off after you dried yourself off, applying a bandage on top of it and taking some with you to pack in your bag. After you put on some clean clothes you threw your most important stuff in some bags to take with you to Heimdall before you laid down on your bed, trying to get some sleep. But the images from the last few hours kept flashing before your eyes, not letting you get the much-needed rest, keeping you up until the early hours, until it was time for you to leave your friends behind, until it was time to leave your home behind.

Sitting in a shuttle, you slightly tapped your foot against the floor, waiting for it to dock to the arrival bay, waiting to start your new life. Your new life aboard the Heimdall, put into the hands of the House of Knives. Your parents were dead, you left behind all your friends, your entire life, basically. The exact second you took your first step on Heimdall you left all of that behind, committing to a new life.


	3. Part III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a fluffy filler :)

It had been exactly one week since you arrived on Heimdall, one week since your parents were killed and one week since you infiltrated the lair of the Dom Popela, killing all their members to revenge your parents. After Mikhail Malikov and the other members of the House of Knives had watched the video of you inside the quarter of the House of Ashes you had expected to get some sort of heavy punishment for what you did, but after you got stitched up and Nik, your now-boyfriend, had bought you to your room, all that you had to face was some scolding for your reckless behaviour, a pat on the shoulder from Mikhail for getting rid of their nemesis and then you were ordered to rest until your bullet wound had completely healed. The worst part wasn’t even that you weren’t allowed to walk around as much as you wanted to, it was the fact that Nik had been your assigned babysitter and how protective he was of you, even though you had to admit it was super cute, seeing him worried and running around helping you wherever he could.

“Nik, you do realise I can actually get that myself, right?” you asked in annoyance as Nik stood up to get you a glass of water.  
“You got shot, (Y/N). I’m not letting you risk ruining your recovery.”  
You rolled your eyes at the boy as he handed you the glass and the medication you had to take in order for your injury to heal faster. Quickly swallowing the pill you handed the glass back to him, a soft smile on your lips. It wasn’t like you weren’t grateful for his help, you definitely were, it was just that you hated feeling useless, like you could do nothing on your own and had to have someone constantly help you.  
“I know you hate this, babe, but I promise you it’ll get better soon. Until then, I’m not gonna leave alone,” he let himself fall onto the bed beside you, bouncing up and down slightly with a teasing smirk on his lips.  
“You know, sometimes I really hate you.”  
“Shut up, you know you love me. I mean, how could you not, look at my handsome face.”  
Involuntarily you had to let out a laugh, his ridiculousness getting the best of you.  
“See, there’s that laugh I love so much.”

For the next few hours, you two were seated on your bed, watching some random shows and talking, getting to know each other better. After your medication kicked in you felt yourself getting drowsy, your eyes getting heavier with every passing minute but you didn’t want to fall asleep just yet, you were enjoying your time with Nik way too much for that. However, your boyfriend noticed soon how tired you were getting, muffling yawns here and there while your eyes occasionally closed for longer than normal.  
“Go to sleep, (Y/N),” he chuckled softly, his voice gentle and caring, “we can continue talking tomorrow but for now you need to get some sleep.”  
Being beyond tired you couldn’t bother to argue with him and cuddled closer to him, your eyes falling close almost immediately when your head touched his chest before you slowly drifted off into the land of dreams.  
Nik smiled down at your sleeping form, adoration filling his eyes. Even though he only knew you for a week, he was already head over heels in love with you, and with every passing hour, he fell more for you, enchanted by your smile, the way you moved, how you talked. Just everything you did, made his heart do somersaults in his chest, his fingertips tingling with longing to touch you, his lips wanting to kiss you. And you laying in his arms in that very moment was everything Nik could wish for, the girl of his dreams sound asleep, your soft breathing fanning over his covered chest. You were everything he ever wanted and more, and Nik was beyond happy to be with you.


	4. Part IV

“Okay folks, let’s get going,” Kady tried to sound enthusiastic but you all deeply dreaded what was about to happen.  
“This is so fucking insane,” you quietly cursed to yourself while looking at the palmpad in your hand, checking for any signs that could negatively affect your mission.  
“Tell me about it.” Strong, ink-covered arms wrapped around you, lips pressing to your cheeks only for you to turn around and face your boyfriend.  
“You’ll be save, right? Because I swear, if you die I’ll kill you.”  
“You do know tha-nevermind. Yes, I’ll be safe, I promise I’ll get back to you,” Nik smiled at you, his arms tightening around your waist. People around you were rushing to say goodbye to their family members, not knowing whether they’d see them again or not while you stood in the arms of your boyfriend, trying not to cry yourself.  
“Hey, look at me, (Y/N),” Nik’s voice drew your attention back to him, away from the people surrounding you.  
“I promise you, I’ll be back, I won’t die out there, I love you too much for that.” In that moment Nik choose to say those three little words for the first time. He had known that he loved you for a long time and he couldn’t keep it bottled up any longer.  
“I love you, too,” you sniffed, tears rolling down your cheek even though you had promised yourself that you wouldn’t cry. Your boyfriend reached for your face, his thumbs wiping your tears away only for more to spill out of your eyes. Burying your face in his flight suit, wetting it with your tears as Nik rested his chin on top of your head, his hands moving up and down your back while he whispered sweet nothings in your ear in an attempt to calm you down.  
“I love you, so much,” he repeatedly whispered into your ear.  
“Pilots, get ready for takeoff,” Ezra’s voice echoed through the hanger, causing Nik to slightly part from you, tears gleaming in his own eyes due to seeing his girlfriend in a condition like this.  
“Stay safe, and don’t forget that I love you,” you mumbled, ready to leave before a hand wrapped around your wrist and pulled you back.  
“I want a better goodbye like that, just, you know, just in case.”  
Nik’s lips crashed into yours, taking your breath away as your hands gripped onto his hair, pulling him impossibly closer to your body. The kiss was desperate. Needy. All your emotions and worries poured into it as you spend several moments intertwined with each other only to be broken apart by Kady’s voice over the speakers in the hanger.  
“Nik and (Y/N), please stop snogging. You’re both really cute together but Nik has to save the universe now.”  
With heated faces, you both parted, awkwardly clearing your throats. Nik pressed another quick peck onto your lips, squeezing your hand before he let go and hurried off to Ezra’s Chimera.  
Sitting down in his chair, Nik could see Ezra’s shit-eating smirk in the reflection of the screen in front of him.  
“Shut it, babyface. From what I heard you had a great departure from your girlfriend as well.”  
“I’m not saying anything,” the older boy raised his hands in surrender, “Just tell me when you’re getting married please.”  
Nik rolled his eyes at his pilot before turning around and punching him in the shoulder for his remark.  
“Everyone ready?” Kady’s voice interrupted the banter between the two teenage boys.  
“Ready as I’ll ever be, Kades.”  
“Good, doors will open in 10, see you on the other side. Love you and take care.”  
“Love you, too,” Ezra mumbled, getting into focus for what was about to happen while Nik looked at the picture he had stuck beside his screen. His finger gently caressed the outline of your face, before pressing his fingers to his lips and touching your picture with them.  
“You’ll see her again, Nik. I’ll promise you that, no matter what will happen.” Ezra put his hand on Nik’s shoulder, giving it a firm squeeze before turning back to his controls.  
“Let’s go kick BeiTech’s ass.”


	5. Part V

It felt weird being back where everything started. Where your life went off the rails, your parents died and you ended up killing several gang members. You didn’t know if you’d ever have to face consequences for what you did but it that moment you were just happy to be alive after everything you went through. After BeiTech infiltrated Heimdall, you somehow managed to defeat them and weird, four-headed snakes just to nearly die while trying to regain control over Kerenza IV. Now you were sitting in a small restaurant with your friends and your boyfriend, Nik, talking about everything and nothing, getting to really know each other while eating some pelmeni. Well not really eating, you all were mostly full, your bellies filled to the rim, but Ella still kept tossing the dumplings in Rhys’ direction, him catching them with his mouth while Nik and Ezra were heavily engaged in a discussion whether the Sabers or the Nights were going to win in tonights game of geeball.

“The Sabers got no backline. They’re dog meat,” Ezra argued, wildly gesturing with his hands.  
“You’re dreaming, chum,” Nik scoffs, thinking for a second before a mischievous glint appeared in his eyes.  
“A hundred ISH says the Knights go down by ten.”  
You could see the gears in Ezra’s head turning, considering if he should accept the bet.  
“Sabers looked pretty good last week against the Vikings, cuz,” Ella chimed in, holding a dumpling in her hand while looking at her cousin. You nodded your head at the young girl, obviously having watched the game, as Nik’s face twisted into fake shock.  
“Et tu, Brute?”  
“Really, Nik? Why do you constantly pull out that little knowledge of Latin you have?” you rolled your eyes had your boyfriend.  
“And where are you getting a hundred ISH, Nik?” Asha wondered, asking the question everyone was asking themself.  
“Always, you doubt me. I remember another time you mocked me. All of you. You mocked. Need I remind you who was laughing last when that Warlock blew Babyface’s ass out of the sky?”  
“Don’t remind me of that, Nik,” you scolded, punching his arm which caused his hand to grip the spot, slightly wincing in pain.  
“He kept the parachute, you know,” Ella interrupted the short silence.  
“Are you serious?” Ezra burst out laughing, tossing his head back.  
“As a heart attack. They used to do it back in the old Terran wars, too. When supplies were real low. Pilots used to bring back their parachutes, use the material for wedding dresses.” Suddenly everyone fell dead silent, eyes turning to look at you and Nik. Nervously you started to fiddle with your hands, heat rising in your face.  
“Well, uhh….”  
“You’re kidding, right?” Rhys was the first to break the silence.  
“We-uh…,” you stammered, not quite finding the right words.  
“Yea, we…we talked about it, you know?” Nik intervened, saving you from at least some of the embarrassment.  
“So you…you want to get married?” Asha’s eyes grew bigger, disbelief clouding in them.  
“Eventually, yea..I mean, the possibility is there.” Nik looked at you, his hand reaching out to grab yours, which laid on top of the table you all sat at, giving it a soft squeeze, a reassuring and loving smile on his face.  
“Well…that just took a completely different turn,” Kady commented before her eyes drifted to the restaurant’s vidwall, “Hey, look.”

SHOCK VERDICT - BEITECH GUILTY  
DIRECTOR OF ACQUISITIONS CONVICTED.  
MORE CHARGED FOR EXECUTIVE BOARD TO FOLLOW.

Upon hearing the news, memories and flashbacks of the last few months flashed before your eyes as Nik pulled you closer to give you a quick kiss on your temple.  
“To absent friends.” Ella lifted a can of Mount Russshmore Energy Drink up, everyone following suit, lifting their glasses or bottles.  
“Absent friends,” you repeated, thinking about all the friends you lost before you all turned back to the vidwall which was now showing Ben Garver talking about his new book deal on LiveFeed.  
“I kind of want to read Garver’s book,” Hanna confessed.   
“Me too, to be honest. Though I’d probably end up screaming and tearing my hair out,” you chuckled.  
“Hey, speaking of literary criticism, which one of you barbarians made those charming additions to my surveillance footage?” Nik leaned forward, looking at every single one of you who all pretended to be as innocent as one gets.  
“Don’t give me that. All those extra bits with the kissing and describing how my shirt stretched over my fucking muscles. Now I look like the kind of guy who writes about my own gun show.”  
“You can’t blame me, Nik, the world had to know how good you are at kissing,” you admitted with a teasing smirk on your lips. “You should consider yourself lucky I didn’t go into detail too much.”  
“And you really don’t write kissing that well,” Kady chimed in.  
“Was the kissing vital to the narrative?” You boyfriend groaned, raking his hands through his hair.  
“Pretty vital,” Asha nodded her head, stabbing her boyfriend into his ribs with her elbow.  
“Yep, vital,” Rhys deadpanned, causing Ella and Ezra to laugh like the teenagers they were.  
“We should go, Ella. Dad’s going to wait up.” Kady got up from her chair, sighing slightly in the process.  
“I cannot say your new curfew is agreeing with me. This concerned-parent-unit think will take some getting used to,” Nik frowned, also getting up and pulling you along with him.  
“He’s her legal guardian, not a parent, Nik,” you corrected him, stepping closer to his side as he wrapped an arm around you out of habit.  
“Plus I didn’t see you volunteering to look after me,” Ella teased.  
“Cuz, I’m here for you every day, but you really don’t want me to be responsible for raising you, I’m a convicted felon after all.”  
“And you didn’t even kill anyone, that’s all me,” you chuckled, knowing that your whole ‘infiltrating-the-House-of-Knives-and-killing-all-their-members-just-to-blow-everything-up-in-the-end’ still freaked Nik out a bit, mostly because he couldn’t wrap his head around how you could’ve been so reckless, then again, he knew you at nothing to lose at that point in your life.  
“Everyone deserves a second chance,” Ella smiled at you two.  
“But I prefer you as my cousin anyways, thank you very much. Plus you’re gonna have your hands full with seatings and choosing foods and flower arrangements at your reception,” she snickered, dodging Nik’s teasing hit.  
“Ella…seriously, stop. We got our hands full with way more stuff at the moment.”  
“Like what?” Asha appeared next to you, a curious look on her face.  
“Uh, well…” You looked at your boyfriend for help.  
“You got yourself into this alone, now try getting out of it,” Nik smirked, amused to see how you were going to save yourself.  
“Oh fuck…” you sighed, searching your mind for a reasonable explanation.  
“We’re gonna have our hands full with dirty diapers soon,” Nik released you from the questioning eyes of your friends.  
“Wait, like?” Kady asked, not sure if she understood right.  
“Yep, (Y/N)’s pregnant.”  
Stunned silence surrounded you before you were suddenly engulfed by two arms belonging to Asha Grant, only to bee soon in the middle of a group hug, everyone joining in and building a big ball of hugs.  
“Guys, I can’t breathe,” you laughed.  
“Oh god, do you need anything, water? Food?” Hanna started rambling only for you to interrupt her.  
“You to stop freaking out.” Nik and Ezra both burst out laughing at your statement, not really expecting that kind of answer from you.  
“Okay well, we gotta go. See you tomorrow?” Nik asked as he grabbed your hand, waving your friends goodbye after they all nodded and walked out of the small restaurant with you, walking through the streets of New Petersburg back to your shared apartment.  
“Well, that went better than I thought it would, to be honest,” you confessed, a happy and content smile on your face.  
“It sure did. I can’t wait to start a family with you, (Y/N).” Nik turned to you, halting in his steps.   
“I love you, Niklas Malikov,” you mumbled, pressing your lips on his in a loving and gentle kiss.  
“I love you, too, (Y/F/N) (Y/L/N).”


End file.
